Grow Local Colorado Proclamation
Passed Unanimously by Denver City Council
On Monday, September 21, 2009
WHEREAS, Denver strives to be a Green City that promotes ecological sustainability through growing local food as evidenced by its support for nearly seventy five urban gardens around the City, numerous farmers’ markets, a vegetable garden in Civic Center Park, a community-supported agricultural plot at Denver Botanic Gardens at Chatfield, a plethora of private gardens, and Mayor John Hickenlooper’s spring declaration of a Grow Local Day; and
WHEREAS, hunger, food insecurity, and poor nutrition are pressing health issues, and access to safe, nutritious, and culturally acceptable food is essential to both human health and ecological sustainability; and
WHEREAS, there are communities in Denver that are considered “food deserts,” with a lack of fresh, affordable, accessible, and healthy food, when access to healthy food reduces diet-related illnesses, such as diabetes, obesity and heart disease; and
WHEREAS, currently less than .2% of Metropolitan Denver’s food needs are produced within the state of Colorado, and the strengthening of the local food shed is paramount to the health, security and sustainability of the community; and
WHEREAS, conventional food and farming operations use pesticides and other chemicals that research indicates have environmental and health concerns and current systems of mass producing and transporting food use large amounts of finite natural resources, including water, oil and natural gas; and
WHEREAS, developing a local food system has the potential to build health, wealth and resiliency in our communities and cultivating local farm and food businesses creates new green industry jobs, reduces health care costs, and contributes to long-term economic prosperity by keeping wealth circulating within the Denver community.
NOW THEREFORE,
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY AND COUNTY OF DENVER:
Section 1. That Denverites, civic associations, businesses, community-based organizations and neighborhoods are encouraged to support locally-produced healthy food including community gardens, greenhouses for food production and aquaculture, farmers’ markets, urban farms, orchards, home gardens, Community and Neighborhood Supported Agriculture (CSAs and NSAs), edible landscaping, rooftop gardens, agricultural incubator projects, and school gardens.
Section 2. That the Clerk of the City and County of Denver shall attest and affix the seal of the City and County of Denver to this proclamation and that a copy be transmitted to Dana Miller, Director, Grow Local Colorado Campaign.
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Co-Signed By:
Alliance for Sustainable Colorado Audubon Society of Greater Denver Bands for Lands Beet Box Catering Blue and Yellow Logic Cafe Colore City O' City Colorado Local Sustainability Denver Green School Denver Urban Gardens Denver Urban Homesteading DINR Denver Independent Network of Restaurants duo Restaurant Earth Force Earthlinks EndoTrend Festival Event gallery 910 Arts Farm Yard Feed Denver First Universalist Church Flobots.org Front Range Sustainable Landscaping Coalition Fruition Green Spaces Grow West – Green Roofs of the West Hazel Rah Farm Heirloom Gardens Hot Ticket Cafe @ The Denver Center for Performing Arts Jay's Parkside Cafe at Riverfront Park Jay's Patio Cafe in LoHi Living Earth Center Legacy Economy Mercury Cafe Mile High Business Alliance Olivéa Restaurant Operation Frontline Colorado Pan African Arts Society Platte Park Neighborhood Assoc. Platte Park Green Team Produce Denver Queen Anne Bed and Breakfast ReDirect Guide Revision International Root Down SAME Café Slow Food Denver Snooze Spector and Associates Steuben’s Sustain3010 Rocky Mt. Grower’s Guide Transition Colorado Transition Denver Transition Evergreen Transition Louisville Transition Manitou Springs Urban Organics Vesta Dipping Grill Virginia Village Green Team Vital Food Farms Vital Yoga WaterCourse Bakery WaterCourse Foods Wild Green Yonder Woodbine Ecology Center |
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